Responsibility

I've been reading works by Henry David Thoreau, specifically Walden and Civil Disobedience. I'm discovering them for the first time and finding that they are truly amazing. The part that really strikes a chord with me is the importance of individual responsibility in relation to government. That when a law is unjust, the individual has a responsibility to take a stand against it (see Gandhi and MLK - both of whom were profoundly influenced by Thoreau). In short, we each have a responsibility to our neighbors and must be willing to make sacrifices for them.

But the issue never really addressed in these texts is the responsibility we have to our families. I understand that we must stand up for what we believe but what if it's to the detriment to our children? Thoreau never had a family so for him this is a nonissue. Gandhi had a strained relationship with some of his kids. A few others spent time in jail for following him. When Martin Luther King Jr. was killed, he left behind a wife and four children.

who's your daddy?

I'm not being critical of any of these great men. I'm just wondering where family fit into the equation for them on a practical level. How does it fit in for anyone who hears a higher calling? I guess right now I'm much too tied up in changing diapers to go out and change the world.

That all might change if there's ever a harsh diaper tax but so far things are okay.